CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Three hours before what was supposed to be the kickoff time for the Carolina Panthers' home opener on Sunday, the giant bronzed panthers stood as silent sentries outside the ticket portals of Ericsson Stadium here, their mute vigil reflective of a lack of activity in the several blocks surrounding an NFL edifice that was to have been filled with more than 70,000 home-team loyalists.

	Weekend schedules
	The NFL's 31 franchises used a variety of schedules for dealing with a weekend devoid of regular-season games. Here is a look at how each club proceeded this weekend. Note that "practice" signifies a team had some sort of organized workout, even if it was just a light walk-through or weightlifting session:
	Team	Sat.	Sun.
	Arizona	Off	Off
	Atlanta	Off	Off
	Baltimore	Practice	Off
	Buffalo	Off	Off
	Carolina	Practice	Off
	Chicago	Practice	Off
	Cincinnati	Off	Practice
	Cleveland	Practice	Practice
	Dallas	Practice	Off
	Denver	Off	Off
	Detroit	Off	Off
	Green Bay	Off	Off
	Indianapolis	Off	Off
	Jacksonville	Practice	Off
	Kansas City	Off	Off
	Miami	Off	Practice
	Minnesota	Practice	Off
	New England	Off	Off
	New Orleans	Practice	Off
	New York Giants	Off	Off
	New York Jets	Practice	Off
	Oakland	Practice	Off
	Philadelphia	Off	Off
	Pittsburgh	Off	Off
	St. Louis	Off	Off
	San Diego	Off	Off
	San Francisco	Off	Off
	Seattle	Off	Off
	Tampa Bay	Off	Off
	Tennessee	Practice	Off
	Washington	Off	Off

In the unseen coaching offices, George Seifert and his staff began preparations for a divisional matchup at Atlanta in Week 3, personnel director Jack Bushofsky reviewed video of some college players and Panthers executives organized contingency plans for bussing the team to the Georgia Dome next weekend if securing a charter flight becomes untenable.

In the distance a church bell tolled, a light wind scuttled a days-old newspaper through the street and brilliant sunshine reflected off the stadium where the Panthers were to have been playing the New England Patriots.

At various venues in the city, groups of Carolina players -- including wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad, a high-profile veteran of Arabic descent -- undertook a series of charitable endeavors. If the streets of The Queen City were indeed deserted, Panthers fans felt anything but abandoned by the franchise or orphaned by the decision of NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue to suspend the schedule for one weekend, as callers voiced their approval of his action on talk radio stations.

And the team's players, somewhat divided early in the week about whether the contests should be played in the wake of America's greatest domestic tragedy, were relieved to be in a temporary comfort zone instead of concerning themselves with end zone matters. For one afternoon, a sport that conjures up great emotion evoked only dispassion.

"It's eerie, no doubt about it," said defensive end Jay Williams, "because there is supposed to be a lot of activity in that area right now. You know, guys yelling to park your car in their lot. Vendors selling stuff. People tailgating and players arriving for the game. But you know what? There will be a lot of Sunday afternoons for that stuff. This was a day when we all needed to be with our families."

Around the league, that seemed to be the sentiment that most resonated from players and coaches and team officials, even if it was muffled at times by the deafening din of the silence created by the postponed schedule. On a weekend when sports was so muted that you could hear a tear drop, the NFL spoke volumes with inaction, and ironically managed to emotionally move most of its employees by mere inertia.

Eighteen of the 31 teams closed down for the entire weekend. Thirteen clubs staged some sort of organized practice or weightlifting session on either Saturday or Sunday. Only the Cleveland Browns worked both days, including a 1:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. Sunday practice to try to maintain some sort of focus for coach Butch Davis' young outfit. Just three teams -- Cleveland, Cincinnati and Miami -- gathered at all on Sunday.

Even if teams had the day off, many coaching staffs were working. There were six staffs contacted by ESPN.com who were in their offices designing game plans for next week. All but two of the head coaches allowed there was a TV on in the background.

Forty-five minutes before the Cincinnati Bengals were to have confronted the Tennessee Titans at Adelphia Coliseum in Nashville, coach Dick LeBeau excused his squad after its two-hour practice. The session was, Cincinnati officials acknowledged, more the result of wanting to keep the players in town rather than permitting them to disperse for two days, and then possibly having trouble getting back to the city because of travel problems.

"At about 1 o'clock or thereabouts, your body felt like it was game time," said Cincinnati linebacker Takeo Spikes. "But your mind and heart no. In one sense, it felt weird not playing a game. In another sense, it felt right."

Spikes spent part of the afternoon speaking by phone with his father, who is battling a brain tumor in Georgia, and some time watching television. A player who prides himself on watching plenty of videotape, Spikes didn't turn on the VCR to peruse the Baltimore offense he will confront next week.

As much as business can return to some semblance of normalcy, it will on Monday, when most NFL teams reconvene. But on Sunday the NFL reinforced the notion that it is time, not touchdowns, that will eventually heal the wounds inflicted last Tuesday morning.

At about the time he was supposed to be running into the St. Louis defense, Atlanta star tailback Jamal Anderson was walking out the door with his wife to take their three kids out to a movie. Falcons quarterback Chris Chandler stayed home with his wife and three daughters. Linebacker Keith Brooking went for a long walk to escape the television set to which he had been riveted all day Saturday.

One veteran AFC player reached by ESPN.com, who wanted to remain anonymous, allowed that he played 24 holes of golf on Sunday morning but that he skipped the back nine on his second round to be home by early afternoon. His plan, he said, was to read the Sunday paper, then take his kids to rent a couple movies.

Why not just go to a theater instead? "Because I didn't want to be in a stadium today, surrounded by thousands of people I don't know, and I don't want to be at a movie with a few hundred strangers," he said. "(Home) is where I belong today."

Several players, most of them not regular churchgoers, said they worshipped on Sunday morning. At least two teams that meet during the week for Bible study convened special sessions with club chaplains Sunday afternoon.

San Francisco players, who all donated blood last Thursday afternoon, spent Sunday at each other's homes, sharing dinner and fellowship and enunciating their emotions over the events of last week. The Oakland Raiders, who on Saturday helped to renovate a local recreation center, helped to counsel each other Sunday afternoon.

"It's a good day for just talking," said offensive tackle Lincoln Kennedy.

During a playing and coaching career that dates back to 1965, Falcons coach Dan Reeves had experienced just one autumn Sunday without football -- exclusive of the '73 season he sat out to pursue a career in business -- but allowed he wanted to "escape" to some sort of sanity this weekend. Reeves, who barely made it through a press briefing Wednesday, is mourning the likely death of the son of a close friend.

Reeves' son-in-law, Atlanta special teams coach Joe DeCamillis, also has a friend who is missing in the collapse of the World Trade Center.

Colts defensive lineman Mike Wells, whose family was to have traveled to Indianapolis for the team's home opener Sunday, instead drove to St. Louis to visit them. Wells was to spend much of day there before heading back to Indianapolis where workouts resume Monday morning.

"I think everybody just wanted to be close to the people they love," Wells said. "I know it's good to spend some time (pondering) what has happened. But there comes a time when you need a respite, you just want to be surrounded by your family."

Some players conceded they just slept in or "kicked back" on the impromptu off-day. Said fullback Greg Comella, one of a contingent of New York Giants players who had spent Saturday, some of them incognito, helping New York's rescue efforts: "You hit a point where you just can't think about (the tragedy) for a while, it's so overwhelming."

The rather incongruous day for people who regularly work on the traditional day of rest even extended to those marginally attached to the NFL.

Tim Green, a color analyst for Fox, spent Sunday morning taking his four children water-skiing on Skaneateles Lake, near his home 20 miles south of Syracuse, N.Y. The afternoon was devoted to a touch-football game with the brood and wife Illyssa. Until the Thursday announcement that games had been postponed, Green forced himself to prepare for his assignment in Detroit, where the Lions were to host the Cowboys.

He quickly switched gears when the games were scuttled, seizing the opportunity to spend a rare Sunday afternoon this time of year at home.

"I'm doing the kind of stuff normal dads would be doing at home on a Sunday," Green said. "And that's probably what most players are doing, too. In the face of this tragedy, we get a small blessing in being able to spend time with the people we love. It's a terrible day, but one to take advantage of, too."

Len Pasquarelli is a senior writer for ESPN.com